Travel Guidance and Booster Shots on Campus
Dear Members of the Carnegie Mellon Community,
Midway through the fall semester, I thank you for your continued diligence and resilience to help mitigate COVID-19 throughout the pandemic. The COVID-19 Updates Dashboard reflects nearly universal compliance with the university’s vaccine policy, which includes getting vaccinated or applying for an exemption. We are grateful for everyone’s efforts toward accomplishing this essential element to maintain the well-being and health of the community.
As we look toward and prepare for the holiday season, I want to share a travel update. Effective November 1, 2021, university-sponsored domestic and international travel for all CMU community members is now permitted subject to unit-based requirements and approval from employee managers. For now, travel to countries that carry a CDC Very High or High level of risk is highly discouraged.
As the CMU community starts to make plans for holiday travel, the CDC offers considerations to help protect individuals, their families, friends and communities. Per this guidance, we continue to encourage all of our community members to wear facial coverings and avoid large events or crowded spaces as ways to limit exposure risks. Students, faculty and staff should also follow the university’s travel recommendations, including asymptomatic COVID-19 testing through Tartan Testing before and after travel as well as symptom monitoring. We strongly encourage all community members to remain vigilant as you plan your in-person return to learning, teaching and research following the Thanksgiving holiday.
I’m also excited to announce that starting next month CMU will begin offering booster shots to eligible community members. Currently, we are only offering Pfizer, however now that the CDC and the FDA have both approved Moderna and J&J, we are also researching those options. If you are unsure if you meet eligibility criteria, or if you have concerns about receiving a booster, we highly recommend that you consult your health care provider. If you are eligible to receive a booster shot, please register for an appointment here.
We have come a long way since COVID-19 emerged last year, and it is my hope that we can continue to protect the health and well-being of our campus community and forge ahead toward success.
Sincerely,
Daryl Weinert
Vice President for Operations, Interim Vice President for Research, COVID-19 Coordinator